THE ISSUE: The current discussions between the United States
and Mexico offer an historic opportunity to achieve needed reforms in our
immigration system. Such reforms will contribute to our national security,
respond to worker shortages that remain a critical issue because of long-term
demographic, economic and education trends, and reunify families.

Needed reforms should be comprehensive and would include opportunities for
work authorization and legal status through a regularization program for
undocumented people living, working in, and contributing to the U.S., and
opportunities to bring in essential workers through a reform of current programs
and the development of a new temporary workers program that differs from
existing and past models, and allows workers to enter the U.S. safely, legally,
and expeditiously. In addition, reforms should reduce backlogs in family-based
immigration and delays in business-based immigration.

BACKGROUND: Our current immigration system has failed in
many ways and needs to be fixed. Employers in several sectors (health care and
construction especially) are unable to get the workers they need, and as the
economy pushes ahead other employers will experience worker shortages, families
remain separated for years due to bureaucratic processing delays and long
backlogs, hard-working tax-paying people who contribute to our economy are
undocumented and forced to live an underground existence, people are losing
their lives trying to cross the border, and smugglers are profiting from this
trade in human lives. The United States needs to reform its immigration system
to recognize the contributions that immigrants have made and their continued
importance to our national well-being. These factors will only intensify as the
U.S. emerges from the current economic slowdown and from the shadows of the
September 11 terrorist attacks. The U.S./Mexico discussions have
internationalized the issue of immigration and have led to a vast broadening of
the policy debate in Washington, D.C.

CURRENT STATUS: Along with its focus on national security,
the Bush Administration continues to affirm the importance of the U.S./Mexico
bilateral efforts, with the U.S./Mexico working teams officially meeting on a
regular basis to continue the discussions that had been disrupted by the
September 11 terrorist attacks.

Approaching Immigration Reform in a Comprehensive Manner:
The United States’ current immigration system needs to be reformed to reflect
current needs and realities. The status quo is unacceptable, especially in a
post-September 11 world in which enhanced security becomes a higher priority, as
does the need to balance our security with the continued flow of people and
goods. As a result of our current system, families are separated for long
periods of time and U.S. employers cannot bring in needed workers. People are
forced to live an underground existence in the shadows, not making themselves
known to the government for fear of being separated from their families and
jobs. The current enforcement system has failed to prevent illegal immigration
and precious resources that should be spent on enhancing our security are wasted
on stopping hard-working people from filling vacancies in the U.S. labor market.
Border enforcement efforts that do little to enhance our security have led to
people losing their lives, while current laws make it difficult for many to
enter legally. Our immigration system needs to be reformed so that legality is
the norm, and immigration is legal, safe, orderly, and reflective of the needs
of American families, businesses, and national security. While discussions
between the U.S. and Mexican governments naturally focus on the issues facing
the two countries, migration issues are best addressed in a “Mexico-plus” manner
that would not preclude remedies for nationals from other
countries.

Implementing Immigration Reform as an Important Component of our
Enhanced National Security. Immigration reform that legalizes
hard-working people already here and that creates a new temporary program will
help the U.S. government focus resources on enhancing security, not on detaining
hard-working people who are filling vacancies in the U.S. labor market or
seeking to reunite with their close family members. In addition, reform that
includes a new legalization program and a temporary worker program will
encourage people to come out of the shadows and be scrutinized by our
government. The legality that results from these initiatives will contribute to
our national security.

Developing a Regularization Program for People in the U.S. Without
Authorization: People who work hard, pay taxes, and contribute to the
U.S. should be given the opportunity to obtain permanent residence. This
legalization would stabilize the workforce of U.S. employers, encourage people
to come out of the shadows to be scrutinized by our government, and allow
immigrants to work and travel legally and be treated equally. Many have been
here for years, are paying taxes, raising families (typically including U.S.
citizen and lawful permanent resident spouses and children), contributing to
their communities and are essential to the industries within which they work. In
order to unite families and keep them together, liberal and generous waivers
must be made available for grounds of admissibility and deportability. It is
neither in the best interests of the workers nor their employers for this
situation to remain unaddressed.

Creating a New Temporary Worker Program: Current
immigration laws do not meet the needs of our economy for short- and long-term
employees in those sectors currently experiencing worker shortages and others
that are expected to experience shortages when the economy rebounds. A new
temporary program would give workers the opportunity to work in areas of the
country where they are needed and would give employers experiencing shortages
the workforce they need. Current programs often have proven unusable by both
employees and employers, and do not accommodate employers facing longer term,
chronic labor shortages. The framework for a new temporary worker program must
significantly differ from existing programs, and must respect both the labor
needs of business as well as the rights of workers.

Opening Up Legal Channels for Family- and Business-Based
Immigration: Our immigration system has been characterized by long
backlogs in family-based immigration and long delays in business-based
immigration. Illegal immigration is a symptom of a system that fails to reunify
families and address economic conditions in the U.S. and abroad. To ensure an
orderly future process, it is critical to reduce bureaucratic obstacles and
undue restrictions to permanent legal immigration. Developing an increased legal
migration flow will make immigration more orderly and legal. It also will allow
more people to reunite with their families and work legally in the U.S., and
would facilitate fair, equitable, and efficient immigration law, policy, and
processing. It is essential to make legal future immigration that otherwise will
happen illegally.

Adequately Funding Immigration Reform Initiatives:
Immigration reform must include adequate funding to implement reform. Congress
frequently passes new immigration laws without including adequate funding. Lack
of adequate funding has contributed to the long backlogs and ineffective,
inefficient and unfair services that currently characterize the Immigration and
Naturalization Service (INS). Whether funds are directed to the INS or other
entities to implement reform, any changes in the law must be accompanied by
adequate funding, in the form of direct congressional appropriations.